The overall goal of PolarNOx is to determine the altitude profile of nitric oxide (NO) in the polar night. NO is created by aurora. In a sunlit atmosphere, NO would be destroyed in about one day. But in the polar night it is expected that the NO abundance can grow to large values. More ...

MISSION STATEMENT: “The visible light produced in the atmosphere as aurora is the last step of a chain of
processes connecting the solar wind to the atmosphere. We are seeking to understand
what structure in these visible signatures can tell us about the electrodynamics of More ...

MISSION STATEMENT:
“Electric fields drive the ionosphere which, in turn, are predicted to set up enhanced neutral winds
within an aurora arc. This experiment will seek to understand the height dependent coupling processes More ...

MISSION STATEMENT: “Electric fields drive the ionosphere which, in turn, are predicted to set up enhanced neutral winds within an aurora arc. More ...

Date

Flight Number

Night / Day

Vehicle

Agency

Experimenter

Experiment

13 Feb 2017

36.306 GE

Night

Black Brant IX

NASA

Pfaff

Plasma Physics

Zone*

Pad

Recovery Required?

Launched?

Date Launched

1S, 2, 3, 4

4

TBA

YES

8:42pm 01 March, 2017

Launch Information

Information

January Window, date Jan 18 - Feb 3, time 9pm - 3am AST;

February Window, date Feb 13 - Mar 5, time 7 PM - 3 AM AST;

*** Dates, Zones and Pad assignments are for planning purposes only
and are subject to change without notice up to 30 days prior to
launch.**

Launch Timing

Most launches have a launch window which may be days or weeks
long. The launch(es) may take place at any time during the window, depending
on logistical, geophysical, weather, and other considerations. It is rarely
possible to predict the exact time at which a given rocket will be launched.
Launches are usually at night for auroral studies, but some daytime launches
are performed for other types of research.

Mission Numbering

Date

Flight Number

Night / Day

Vehicle

Agency

Experimenter

Experiment

Feb. 18-April 7, 2003

1

N

Terrer-Orion 41.034 UE

NASA

Conde / Univ. of Alaska

Plasma Physics

Zone*

Pad

Recovery Required?

Launched?

Date Launched

1N, 1S, 2,3

2

No

Yes

12:50 AM, March 25, 2003

In the vehicle column of the table above, an alpha-numeric mission code
follows the rocket motor(s) designation, eg. "Terrier-Orion 41.034
UE". The first number in the code identifies the the rocket motor(s).
In the case of our example above, 41 corresponds to Terrier-Orion. The following
table will help you decode motor designations. Hyphenated motor names designates
multi-stage rockets with two or more different rocket motors.

Numbering System for Rockets

Numbering System For Rockets

1 - Aerobee 100

11 - Argo D-8 Journeyman

21 - Black Brant VB/C

31 - Nike-Hawk (Orion)

2 - Arcon

12 - Special Vehicles

22 - Black Brant IIIB

32 - Nike-Javelin

3 - Nike-Asp

13 - Aerobee 170

23 - Astrobee D

33 - Taurus-Orion

4 - Aerobee 150/150A

14 - Nike-Apachev

24 - Aries

34 - Taurus-Tomahawk

5 - Iris

15 - Arcas

25 - Astrobee F

35 - Black Brant X

6 - Aerobee 300

16 - Astrobee 1500

26 - Aerobee 200

36 - Black Brant IX

7 - Argo E-5

17 - Aerobee 350

27 - Nike-Black Brant V

37 - Viper-Dart

8 - Argo D-4 Javelin

18 - Nike-Tomahawk

28 - Nike-Malemute

38 - Taurus-Nike-Tomahawk

9 - Skylark

19 - Black Brant IV

29 - Terrier-Malemute

39 - Black Brant XI

10 - Nike-Cajun

20 - Bullpup-Cajun

30 - Hawk (Orion)

40 - Black Brant XII

41 - Terrier-Orion

The second number of our example, i.e. 034 is a sequential flight
identification number assignment for the year. The letters UE in our example,
identify the agency and discipline responsible for the flight -- a University
(University of Alaska, Fairbanks) conducting research in Plasma Physics. The
following table will allow you to decode the two letter identifier.

Agency

Discipline

A - Government agency other than N or D (below)

E - Plasma Physics

C - Industrial corporation

G - Galactic Astronomy

D - Department of Defense

H - High-energy Astrophysics

G - Goddard Space Flight Center

L - Planetary Atmospheres

I - International

P - Special Projects

N - NASA Center other than G or W

S - Solar Physics

U - College or university

T - Test and Support

W - Wallops Flight Facility

U - Upper Atmosphere Research

As one would expect, the size of the rocket motor limits the weight and size
of the instrument payload sent aloft, the rocket's altitude at apogee, or the
duration of flight through a particular region of the thermosphere. Another
weight consideration is a parachute recovery system. So as with all things,
there is a cost-benefit calculation involved when planning a mission. You
wouldn't want to use an Aries motor when an Orion(Hawk) will do the job. The
following table gives parameters of typical sounding rocket motors.